“Life is a long lesson in humility.” ― J.M. Barrie, in his inspirational book aptly named“The Little Minister”. By a Fijileaks commentator

Fijileaks: Reddy had called the manager of the school after which Prasad sent him the email (23 November), also copied to Khaiyum, telling Reddy that such petty-mindedness was unbecoming of an Education Minister; Reddy claims he did not demand for the removal of Biman Prasad but just that it was not right for Prasad to speak first.

Fijileaks to "The Little Minister": "It is not a storm in a tea cup tantrum"

"Today was a happy occasion for the school and it was not about politics. You made it so and it is regrettable" - Prasad to Reddy

Minister for Education Dr Mahendra Reddy says it is not right that another politician speaks first before the Chief Guest delivers his speech.

Reddy’s comments follow a letter written by NFP Leader Biman Prasad saying that Dr Mahendra Reddy demanded that Prasad be removed from the program of the Tamavua Primary School prize giving ceremony and the opening of the new school hall today.

Dr Reddy was invited to speak as the Chief Guest while Prasad a patron of the school was also invited to speak at the event.

The Education Minister says he did not demand for the removal of Biman Prasad but just that it was not right for Prasad to speak first.

Biman Prasad who wrote to Dr Mahendra Reddy says he was supposed to speak as a Patron and talk about Jagindar Singh and his contribution to the school.

He says the programme was made several days before and he is sure that Dr Reddy knew about the program.Prasad claims that he was told this morning that Dr Mahendra Reddy demanded that he be removed from the programme and not be allowed to speak.

He also claims that Dr Reddy demanded that if he was present, the Education Minister will not officiate as Chief Guest. Prasad says as a mark of respect for Jagindar Singh he decided to remove himself from the programme and returned to the office.

He says he found such petty‑mindedness from Dr Reddy unbecoming of an Education Minister. He says today was a happy occasion for the school and it was not about politics but Dr Reddy made it so and it is regrettable.

According to Biman Prasad two days ago, he shared the same platform with Minister Parveen Bala at the opening of the Westfield Villas in Nadi and they had a great opening.

Prasad has also copied the letter to the Acting Prime Minister for his information. Source: Fijivillage News

This Student Beater is still at the school - with Reddy turning blind eye:

THE PARTING OF WAYS: One (Biman Prasad) went onto lead the NFP and the other (Mahendra Reddy) ran the post 2006 coup Commerce Commission, joined FijiFirst Party, and is now "The Little Minister" of Education in Fiji:

From Fiji Sun archive, December 2006:

Economists warned Chaudhry: Coup will hurt Indo-Fijians

By VICTOR LAL

As the military tightened its noose around the Laisenia Qarase’s multi-party government with threats to depose it, two of the country’s leading Indo-Fijian economists, Professor Biman Prasad and Dr Mahendra Reddy, wrote to the Fiji Labour Party leader Mahendra Chaudhry on 26 November 2006, calling upon him to recommend the formation of a government of national unity to avert a military coup.

The economists were writing to Mr Chaudhry not only as concerned citizens but also as members of the Indo-Fijian community, and the fact that Mr Chaudhry had the mandate of the majority of their respective community. Uppermost in the minds of the two economists was the spectre of violence against the Indo-Fijians, and Mr Chaudhry’s alleged “conspicuous silence on the role of the military”.

They recalled the violence that emanated from the 2000 coup and did not rule of new outbreak of violence in the event of a coup: “Any intervention by the military could start widespread violence against the Indians throughout the country and this may be hard for the army to control. There is evidence of this happening in 2000.” As members of the Indo-Fijian community the two of them told Mr Chaudhry that “the Indians could be the targets of all sorts of violence and discrimination”.

Professor Prasad and Dr Reddy also feared that the military might abrogate the 1997 Constitution and there was also a possibility of the re-introduction of a more racially based constitution as the 1990 Constitution following the Rabuka coups of 1987. For the full letter to Mr Chaudhry see page 3:

In my view both MR and BP are politicians, fight it out boys and please for God sake, dont ask us normal people for support. Go head to head, we loving it, more the better. I am waiting for good reply for the Darth Vader. You are big guys, heavy weights in our eyes, go for each other, we want the best from you all, and get the best for your voters.

Also, to you editor of Fiji Leaks, please play the role of a fair referee, dont just always hit the government; you losing credibility my boy. Be a good journalist.

Reply

Sona Lia Lia

22/11/2015 10:40:48 pm

Dear Editor, I plea to you to write a balance report, the basic of good journalism. You only reported Biman's side of the story, so unfair, please get the Minister's side of the story and report.

Reply

Lia Lia Levu

23/11/2015 12:41:10 am

Areh..Sona Lia Lia... you are very Lia Lia.

Fijileaks is the Balance. If you want to Read the minister's crap -read the Fiji Sun, found in the Fiction section of the Public libraries. Jao Pharo!

So True L L L, If you want to see unbalance story, you should read the Fiji Sun. It is full of those kind of story.

Fijileaks Editor

22/11/2015 10:46:57 pm

This Reddy chap has a policy of not speaking to Fijileaks or responding to questions, so you cant accuse Fijileaks of bias!

Reply

Lessons

22/11/2015 11:15:59 pm

“Life is a long lesson in humility.” ― J.M. Barrie, In his inspirational book aptly named “The Little Minister”.

Reply

Injustice

22/11/2015 11:24:04 pm

Dear Sona Lia Lia

I think you have been to Fijileaks for the very first time. I have been following fijileaks since its inception and I am of the view that Fijileaks runs a balance report. Well any form of dictatorship needs to be criticised and the Minister of Education is Fiji's porn star so he wants to do everything first and doesnt want to give chance to others. What an opportunist cyclop.

Reply

Student

23/11/2015 12:59:02 am

My little sister is very distressed and Crying over her Intermediate results. She thinks she has let our parents down, She worked very hard for her papers with my help and my fathers. The Minster must explain something.

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Bekuf Minister for Education

23/11/2015 01:50:39 am

The guy has a habit of condemning community run schools and the intelligence of people who have done it for donkey's years.. the students, son's and daughters of these schools have become doctors, nurses, accountants today..

One Wonders whether this current minister with gall of arrogance can change this for better, if has the balls desolve all community run schools and have it run by ministry and his goons what a sorry ass '

Reply

Kavita

23/11/2015 12:32:34 pm

Very true, community run schools have contributed a lot to the country.

This minister does not have the intellect to bring about proper reforms on how the schools can be run in a better way. Why cant the minister get the Fijian Elections Office get involved and supervise elections in these community organisations and school board appointments so that the best people get elected and appointed. Part of the problem has been clique work , biased elections processes, nepotism , wrong placements etc. The best persons to manage institutions are left out.

When taxpayers money are used to subsidise these community run institutions, it is the responsibility of the government to ensure that these institutions are run in a proper way and have high standard output. Egoistic individuals in communities should not have absolute rights to run and manage schools in the way they see fit using tax payers money. And they remain in committees by manipulatiing their own election processes and appointments.

Why is the minister not getting the fundamentals right in community run institutions?

Whilst the trade union elections are handled by the FEO , even though the trade unions have private membership funding, the community insititutions with such large taxpayer grants are left to community committees some rouge and lacking in abilities.

We have a minister whose abilities are below par to make any positive improvements. He can only talk and show his immature excitements.

Reply

Fools of Paradise

23/11/2015 03:50:14 am

Wahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh I want to Wahhhhhhhhhh I don't like him Wahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh tell him to go . sounds familiar ? 6 year old . douchebag is self centered pig . what's a balanced report ?? you think cockeye will comment ? fiji leaks has exposed enough to throw his arrogance in jail for ever. douchebag !!!

Reply

Chiku

23/11/2015 07:37:49 am

Another day and another illustration of his mediocrity from the mediocre minister. Dr Mahendra Reddy is The Little Minister strutting about with an inflated sense of self- importance - like the Toad in The Well!

Reply

rajend Naidu

23/11/2015 07:59:18 am

Another very illuminating read for Fijileaks and Fiji politics followers is Wilhelm Reich's book Listen, Little Man! . Written in 1946 Reich talks to us about "...how, wherever he ( the little man ) gains power as a " representative of the people ", he misuses his power and makes it crueler than the power it has supplanted... Reich has us to look honestly at ourselves and to assume responsibility for our lives..." ( Goodread Review ).
Ps : whoever borrowed my copy never got around to returning it, a friendly reminder!

Reply

Avinesh

23/11/2015 09:09:28 am

Mehendra reddy has EGO, which will bring him down....

Reply

Dekho

23/11/2015 09:52:29 am

He won't always be Minister will he? Today nobody takes notice of Rabuka who was coup grandfather and prime minister. Dr Reddy is only a " little minister ". What's to become of him after he is minister no more? He needs to keep that in his small mind.

Reply

Master's Monkey

24/11/2015 01:00:33 am

Community run schools have surpassed outcomes in education excellence all over fiji, they have better facilities and displayed common unity and transparency in achieving better results for the children's future for decades.
The current minister by his display of absolute grandstanding in the Tamavua Primary School affair demonstrated the SKUNK he is, an amateur and a master's monkey.

Reply

Minister Stinks

24/11/2015 07:39:00 am

Biman did the right thing by leaving the premises. Minster has shown his selfishyness - well if his bosses are worse than him, than I don't know.

Gov't of Fiji smell foul.

Reply

Kavita

24/11/2015 11:04:10 am

It is perfectly alright to be hard on the Minister. I was -- thinking why the minister would stoop so low. Well he may have reasons for it. Tamavua primary school is close to the SAKOCA settlement where the minister had been frequenting at odd times over the years. He felt ownership of the area and also contributed $18,000 for his love and tea ladys home. Coming as a chief guest in the area , he did not want anyone stealing his show. He wanted to have absolute feeling , like a king , elated and what not.

And with someone special in the audience from SAKOCA settlement, minister Reddy wanted the whole event to be only His CUP of Tea !

Reply

So I See...

24/11/2015 11:38:34 am

Biman was Kebab Meh Haddi.

Reply

I Saw What You Didn't

24/11/2015 03:02:14 pm

Yes, what I saw and heard, you did not. So go and kiss your stinky minister.

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"...Secrecy is the keystone of all tyranny. Not force, but secrecy... censorship. When any government, or any church for that matter, undertakes to say to its subjects, 'This you may not read, this you must not see, this you are forbidden to know,' the end result is tyranny and oppression, no matter how holy the motives." --Robert A. Heinlein, -If This Goes On